Humanitext Reader

Aristophanes · Wasps §317-390

Philocleon's Lament and Plan to Escape by Window

Passage 5 of 20 · Greek

Summary

Philocleon, confined to his house, converses with the chorus, gnaws through the net, and prepares to escape from the window using a rope.

§317πάλαι διὰ τῆς ὀπῆς §317aὑμῶν ὑπακούων.
I have long been listening to you through this chink.
§318ἀλλὰ γὰρ οὐχ οἷός τʼ εἴμʼ §318aᾄδειν.
But indeed I am not able to sing.
τί ποιήσω;
What shall I do?
§319τηροῦμαι δʼ ὑπὸ τῶνδʼ, ἐπεὶ §320βούλομαί γε πάλαι μεθʼ ὑμῶν §321ἐλθὼν ἐπὶ τοὺς καδίσκους §322κακόν τι ποιῆσαι.
For I am watched by these men, although I have long wished to go with you to the voting urns and do some mischief.
§323ἀλλʼ ὦ Ζεῦ Ζεῦ μέγα βροντήσας §324ἤ με ποίησον καπνὸν ἐξαίφνης §325ἢ Προξενίδην ἢ τὸν Σέλλου §326τοῦτον τὸν ψευδαμάμαξυν.
But, oh Zeus, loudly thundering Zeus, either turn me suddenly into smoke, or into Proxenides, or into this son of Sellus, that braggart.
§327τόλμησον ἄναξ χαρίσασθαί μοι, §328πάθος οἰκτίρας· ἤ με κεραυνῷ §329διατινθαλέῳ σπόδισον ταχέως, §330κἄπειτʼ ἀνελών μʼ ἀποφυσήσας §331εἰς ὀξάλμην ἔμβαλε θερμήν· §332ἢ δῆτα λίθον με ποίησον ἐφʼ οὗ §333τὰς χοιρίνας ἀριθμοῦσι.
Deign, O King, to grant me this favor, pitying my suffering; either roast me quickly with a scorching thunderbolt, and then pick me up, blow away the ashes, and cast me into hot vinegar-sauce; or indeed make me a stone on which they count the voting-shells.
§334τίς γάρ ἐσθʼ ὁ ταῦτά σʼ εἵργων §334aκἀποκλῄων τῇ θύρᾳ;
For who is the one who is confining you and shutting you in with the door?
λέξον· §335πρὸς εὔνους γὰρ φράσεις.
Speak, for you will be speaking to friends.
§336οὑμὸς υἱός.
My son.
ἀλλὰ μὴ βοᾶτε· καὶ γὰρ τυγχάνει §337οὑτοσὶ πρόσθεν καθεύδων.
But do not shout; for he happens to be sleeping right in front here.
ἀλλʼ ὕφεσθε τοῦ τόνου.
Lower your tone.
§338τοῦ δʼ ἔφεξιν ὦ μάταιε ταῦτα δρᾶν σε βούλεται;
With what purpose, you foolish man, does he wish to do this to you?
§339καὶ τίνα πρόφασιν ἔχων;
And with what pretext?
§340οὐκ ἐᾷ μʼ ὦνδρες δικάζειν οὐδὲ δρᾶν οὐδὲν κακόν, §341ἀλλά μʼ εὐωχεῖν ἕτοιμός ἐστʼ· ἐγὼ δʼ οὐ βούλομαι.
He does not allow me, men, to judge nor to do any mischief, but he is ready to feast me; but I do not wish it.
§342τοῦτʼ ἐτόλμησʼ ὁ μιαρὸς χανεῖν §342aὁ Δημολογοκλέων ὅδʼ, §343ὅτι λέγεις σύ τι περὶ τῶν νεῶν §343aἀληθές.
This filthy Demologocleon dared to utter this, because you speak some truth about the ships.
οὐ γὰρ ἄν ποθʼ §344οὗτος ἁνὴρ τοῦτʼ ἐτόλμησεν §344aλέγειν, εἰ §345μὴ ξυνωμότης τις ἦν.
For this man would never have dared to say this, unless he were some conspirator.
§346ἀλλʼ ἐκ τούτων ὥρα τινά σοι ζητεῖν καινὴν ἐπίνοιαν, §347ἥτις σε λάθρᾳ τἀνδρὸς τουδὶ καταβῆναι δεῦρο ποιήσει.
But under these circumstances it is time for you to seek some new plan, which will make you come down here in secret from this man.
§348τίς ἂν οὖν εἴη;
What then could it be?
ζητεῖθʼ ὑμεῖς, ὡς πᾶν ἂν ἔγωγε ποιοίην· §349οὕτω κιττῶ διὰ τῶν σανίδων μετὰ χοιρίνης περιελθεῖν.
You search, as I would do anything; I so long to walk about through the barriers with a voting-shell.
§350ἔστιν ὀπὴ δῆθʼ ἥντινʼ ἂν ἔνδοθεν οἷός τʼ εἴης διορύξαι, §351εἶτʼ ἐκδῦναι ῥάκεσιν κρυφθεὶς ὥσπερ πολύμητις Ὀδυσσεύς;
Is there indeed any hole which you would be able to dig through from inside, and then slip out disguised in rags like the resourceful Odysseus?
§352πάντα πέφαρκται κοὐκ ἔστιν ὀπῆς οὐδʼ εἰ σέρφῳ διαδῦναι.
Everything is blocked up and there is not even a hole for a gnat to slip through.
§353ἀλλʼ ἄλλο τι δεῖ ζητεῖν ὑμᾶς· ὀπίαν δʼ οὐκ ἔστι γενέσθαι.
So you must seek something else; it is impossible to become hole-y.
§354μέμνησαι δῆθʼ, ὅτʼ ἐπὶ στρατιᾶς κλέψας ποτὲ τοὺς ὀβελίσκους §355ἵεις σαυτὸν κατὰ τοῦ τείχους ταχέως, ὅτε Νάξος ἑάλω.
Do you remember indeed when, while on campaign, you once stole the roasting-spits and let yourself down quickly from the wall, when Naxos was taken?
§356οἶδʼ· ἀλλὰ τί τοῦτʼ;
I know it; but what of that?
οὐδὲν γὰρ τοῦτʼ ἐστὶν ἐκείνῳ προσόμοιον.
For this is not at all similar to that.
§357ἥβων γὰρ κἀδυνάμην κλέπτειν, ἴσχυόν τʼ αὐτὸς ἐμαυτοῦ, §358κοὐδείς μʼ ἐφύλαττʼ, ἀλλʼ ἐξῆν μοι §359φεύγειν ἀδεῶς.
For then I was young and able to steal, and I was master of my own strength, and no one was watching me, but it was open to me to flee without fear.
νῦν δὲ ξὺν ὅπλοις §360ἄνδρες ὁπλῖται διαταξάμενοι §361κατὰ τὰς διόδους σκοπιωροῦνται, §362τὼ δὲ δύʼ αὐτῶν ἐπὶ ταῖσι θύραις §363ὥσπερ με γαλῆν κρέα κλέψασαν §364τηροῦσιν ἔχοντʼ ὀβελίσκους.
But now, men-at-arms with weapons, drawn up in order, are keeping watch along the passages, and two of them at the doors keep watch on me, as if I were a weasel that had stolen meat, holding spits.
§365ἀλλὰ καὶ νῦν ἐκπόριζε §366μηχανὴν ὅπως τάχισθʼ· ἕως §366aγάρ, ὦ μελίττιον.
But even now, devise a scheme as quickly as possible; for it is dawn, my little honey.
§367διατραγεῖν τοίνυν κράτιστόν ἐστί μοι τὸ δίκτυον.
Then it is best for me to gnaw through the net.
§368ἡ δέ μοι Δίκτυννα συγγνώμην ἔχοι τοῦ δικτύου.
And may Dictynna forgive me for the net.
§369ταῦτα μὲν πρὸς ἀνδρός ἐστʼ ἄνοντος ἐς σωτηρίαν.
This indeed is the part of a man pressing forward to safety.
§370ἀλλʼ ἔπαγε τὴν γνάθον.
Come, set your jaw to work.
§371διατέτρωκται τοῦτό γʼ.
This part at least is gnawed through.
ἀλλὰ μὴ βοᾶτε μηδαμῶς, §372ἀλλὰ τηρώμεσθʼ ὅπως μὴ Βδελυκλέων αἰσθήσεται.
But do not shout at all, but let us watch out lest Bdelycleon perceive it.
§373μηδὲν ὦ τᾶν δέδιθι, μηδέν· §374ὡς ἐγὼ τοῦτόν γʼ, ἐὰν γρύξῃ §374aτι, ποιήσω δακεῖν τὴν §375καρδίαν καὶ τὸν περὶ ψυχῆς §376δρόμον δραμεῖν, ἵνʼ εἰδῇ §377μὴ πατεῖν τὰ §378τοῖν θεοῖν ψηφίσματα.
Fear nothing, my good sir, nothing; for if he mutters at all, I will make him bite his own heart and run a race for his life, so that he may learn not to trample upon the decrees of the two Goddesses.
§379ἀλλʼ ἐξάψας διὰ τῆς θυρίδος τὸ καλῴδιον εἶτα καθίμα §380δήσας σαυτὸν καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἐμπλησάμενος Διοπείθους.
Come, fasten the rope through the window and let yourself down, having bound yourself and filled your soul with Diopeithes.
§381ἄγε νυν, ἢν αἰσθομένω τούτω ζητῆτόν μʼ ἐσκαλαμᾶσθαι §382κἀνασπαστὸν ποιεῖν εἴσω, τί ποιήσετε;
Come then, if those two perceive it and try to hook me and pull me back inside, what will you do?
φράζετε νυνί.
Tell me now.
§383ἀμυνοῦμέν σοι τὸν πρινώδη θυμὸν ἅπαντες καλέσαντες §384ὥστʼ οὐ δυνατόν σʼ εἵργειν ἔσται· τοιαῦτα ποιήσομεν ἡμεῖς.
We will defend you, summoning up all our oak-hard anger, so that it will not be possible to confine you; such things we will do.
§385δράσω τοίνυν ὑμῖν πίσυνος, καὶ — μανθάνετʼ; — ἤν τι πάθω ʼγώ, §386ἀνελόντες καὶ κατακλαύσαντες θεῖναί μʼ ὑπὸ τοῖσι δρυφάκτοις.
I will do it then, trusting in you; and—do you understand?—if anything happens to me, pick me up, weep over me, and bury me under the court railings.
§387οὐδὲν πείσει· μηδὲν δείσῃς.
You will suffer nothing; fear nothing.
ἀλλʼ ὦ βέλτιστε καθίει §388σαυτὸν θαρρῶν κἀπευξάμενος τοῖσι πατρῴοισι θεοῖσιν.
But, my good friend, let yourself down courageously, praying to your ancestral gods.
§389ὦ Λύκε δέσποτα, γείτων ἥρως· σὺ γὰρ οἷσπερ ἐγὼ κεχάρησαι, §390τοῖς δακρύοισιν τῶν φευγόντων ἀεὶ καὶ τοῖς ὀλοφυρμοῖς·
O Lord Lycus, hero-neighbor; for you, just like me, delight in the tears and lamentations of defendants;

Notes

  1. §319ἐπεὶ — Here, ἐπεὶ introduces a clause that explains the cause of his distress, conveying a contrast between his physical confinement and his long-standing desire to join his colleagues.
  2. §326ψευδαμάμαξυν — A compound meaning "false vine-trellis," used here as a derogatory term for a braggart or empty talker, likened to "smoke" without substance.
  3. §342aΔημολογοκλέων — A comical compound of δῆμος (people), λόγος (speech), and Κλέων (Cleon), used by the chorus to mock the son as a demagogue of Cleon's type.
  4. §353ὀπίαν — A pun on ὀπίας (a type of cheese curdled with fig-juice, containing holes) and ὀπή (a hole or loophole of escape).
  5. §375τὸν περὶ ψυχῆς δρόμον — A proverbial expression meaning "to run a race for one's life," denoting a desperate flight. The noun δρόμον is a cognate accusative of the verb δραμεῖν.
  6. §381αἰσθομένω τούτω — Dual masculine nominative forms of the participle and the demonstrative pronoun, referring to the two guards (the son and the servant).
  7. §385ἤν τί πάθω ʼγώ — A common euphemism meaning "if anything should happen to me," used here to mean "if I should die."

Cite this passage

Aristophanes, Wasps §317-390. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0019.tlg004.humanitext-grc2:317-390

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